The Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra returns to Carnegie Hall under the exceptional leadership of Susanna Mälkki, a conductor revered for “the absolute integrity of her music-making” (Chicago Tribune) and ability to “invest anything she touches with persuasive grandeur” (San Francisco Chronicle). Mälkki’s critically acclaimed Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage debut came in 2022 when she lent her talents to conducting the New York Philharmonic, and it will be a thrill to see her lead her nation’s own Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra in this all-Finnish program. Hear masterworks by Sibelius and a transportive piece by Kaija Saariaho—an ideal showcase for Debs Creative Chair and endlessly creative flute virtuoso Claire Chase.

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Founded in 1882, the highly regarded Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra (HPO) has the distinction of having premiered most of the great Finnish composer Jean Sibelius’s symphonies, with the composer himself conducting. That is in fact the case for the Symphony No. 2, featured on this program and called “a confession of the soul” by the composer—although many Finns of the day interpreted the work as a call for national independence.

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Felipe Lara’s Double Concerto, written specifically for flutist Claire Chase and jazz bassist and singer Esperanza Spalding, employs a vast array of effects from both soloists. In Petrushka Stravinsky created an exciting new world of sound — shifting rhythms and keys, and echoes of a barrel organ — to tell the story of a puppet love triangle set at a Shrovetide Fair. Susanna Mälkki conducts.

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Felipe Lara’s Double Concerto, written specifically for flutist Claire Chase and jazz bassist and singer Esperanza Spalding, employs a vast array of effects from both soloists. In Petrushka Stravinsky created an exciting new world of sound — shifting rhythms and keys, and echoes of a barrel organ — to tell the story of a puppet love triangle set at a Shrovetide Fair. Susanna Mälkki conducts.

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Susanna Mälkki leads the LA Phil in the joyous polkas and melancholy dumkas of Dvořák’s spirited Slavonic Dances. Written while the composer was relatively unknown, Dvořák’s spirited transformation of Czech and Bohemian folk dances rhythms launched his career. Famously obsessed with railroads—even saying once he would trade all his symphonies for having invented the locomotive—the Slavonic Dances invites listeners to imagine a train journey through Eastern Europe, taking in the many dance melodies heard at weddings and celebrations.

When asked to describe Felipe Lara’s Double Concerto after its first rehearsal, Grammy-winning jazz vocalist and bassist Esperanza Spalding called it “magic, interdimensional space music.” Spalding’s partner in opening portals to new sound worlds is MacArthur Fellow Claire Chase, armed with both a traditional flute and her contrabass version nicknamed “Big Bertha.”

Concerts in the Thursday 2 subscription series are generously supported by the Otis Booth Foundation.

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When asked to describe Felipe Lara’s Double Concerto after its first rehearsal, Grammy-winning jazz vocalist and bassist Esperanza Spalding called it “magic, interdimensional space music.” Spalding’s partner in opening portals to new sound worlds is MacArthur Fellow Claire Chase, armed with both a traditional flute and her contrabass version nicknamed “Big Bertha.”

DVOŘÁK — Slavonic Dances, Op. 46

Intermission

Felipe LARA — Double Concerto (U.S. premiere, LA Phil commission)

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When asked to describe Felipe Lara’s Double Concerto after its first rehearsal, Grammy-winning jazz vocalist and bassist Esperanza Spalding called it “magic, interdimensional space music.” Spalding’s partner in opening portals to new sound worlds is MacArthur Fellow Claire Chase, armed with both a traditional flute and her contrabass version nicknamed “Big Bertha.”

Program:

DVOŘÁK — Slavonic Dances, Op. 46

Intermission

Felipe LARA — Double Concerto (U.S. premiere, LA Phil commission)

More Information Here